The orphan city
KARACHI: There are many grandiloquent epithets used for Karachi, seemingly right out of a tourist guide. These include the city of lights, the city by the sea, the economic hub of Pakistan etc, etc. However, over the past couple of weeks, more than anything else, it has become the city of overflowing sewers and mounds of garbage. Perhaps, then, Karachi should be renamed the orphan city, as there is obviously no one to care for it.
Cleanliness is half of faith, we have been told since we were toddlers. Unfortunately, the impact of this wise maxim has not sunk in where society as a whole is concerned, especially where our rulers and administrators are concerned.
The shantytowns and hovels of the poor in Karachi have always been neglected where hygiene and sanitary conditions go. But now the monstrous wave of filth has touched the shores of the middle class, as well as the mansions of the rich.
In a strange twist of faith, following moderate to heavy rains combined with the Eidul Azha celebrations last week, the already creaky sanitation system of the city collapsed completely, as rainwater mixed with sewage entered homes, and the toxic stench of garbage mixed with offal created a deadly combo that made it hard to breathe.
There seemed to be no area in the city free from this menace, as main roads as well as quiet side streets were all affected. It would be interesting to see what a first-time visitor to Karachi would have thought of the pathetic state of this city. ‘Is this how these people live?’ he or she would ask themselves. ‘Amid piles of garbage, swarms of flies and puddles of sewage?’